Election 2008

The 2008 election is exciting, scary, but important. The election is exciting because it signifies my transition to adulthood by my ability to vote. It is scary because I have to decide who to vote for. It is important because it will help decide the future of the United States of America. I took the responsibility to vote seriously and registered very soon after turning 18. I have not enjoyed the past eight years. There has been terrorism and war. There has also been a terrible decline in the economy. Choosing who to vote for has been scary because I resonate with the democratic party more closely, but I really respect and agree with some republic views as well. Plus I originally wanted Hilary Clinton to be our president and voted for her in the primaries, but she lost. Between the two candidates we have to vote for I feel quite confused at times. I think that McCain is honorable to have served our country and been a tortured prisoner of war, refusing his freedom rather spill information. I also know that I disagree with war, and he is quite pro-war. I do not understand how after experiencing the horrors of war he would be very pro-war now, claiming he might make us stay for one-hundred years. I really do not believe this is a just war, and also I believe in Jesus and know that war is not Christ's way. On the other hand, Obama's plans make me nervous. My mom is a family practice physician who says that government health care will put her out of business. I want my mom to be able to work. I do not know if health care will actually be able to change if Obama is elected, but I do know that for several reasons social health care does appeal to me in the least. I think everyone deserves health care, but I do not believe that everyone should be forced to have equal health care if they have the means to have better. The election makes me uncomfortable because it causes me to face that there are very large differences between some of my friends and I. I feel like there is a stigma on democrats that they are not Christians, but I feel like they practice more of what Christ preached by not being as pro-death penalty, war, money, and judgmental and being stewards of the earth. I have already voted absentee, but I do not know which way the election will go. However, if McCain is elected, I hope to goodness that nothing happens to him causing Sarah Palin to become president. I think she would hurt the chances of a woman being elected as president for a very long time...

IDC Midterm Strategies

Professor DeLapp gave each of us a page of prompts to use for writing our essay. He also gave us a study guide concerning Friday's test. I have already started my term paper, and I chose a prompt about death and immortality. My strategy concerning my term paper is to finish it as quickly as possible, so I that can devote the other time I have studying for the actual test. My strategies for studying are thoroughly reviewing every question he lists and making sure I have a good answer for them. I am going to devote two days to complete this task. The last two days I have for studying, I am going to briefly review the questions I have already answered and make sure I am comfortable with them. I am also going to do that so the answers stay fresh in my mind. Today I am going to go through the list of characters from the works and write a brief explanation of who they are, since that part will either be matching or multiple choice. Once I have labeled each character, I will feel able to identify which ones I don't know very well. I am going to make flash cards for those characters and study them for the last two days I have before the test. I am planning to study in my room because it is usual unoccupied, quiet, and peaceful. When this isn't the case I will study outside in nature, listening to my ipod to block out passerby's conversations.

"Getting to Know You.."

During the Music School's convocation Dean Hoffman mentioned the importance of having friends during the busy college years. Sometimes a student may feel so rundown and overwhelmed with the music school's workload that she needs support from another to get back on board. I took this seriously and have been trying to make friends. The people I have formed the closest relationships with have been music students. Since the music students share many of the same classes, they carry the same burden of work. Plus, they can commiserate. Even though complaining does not change the circumstance, it is nice to vent with some. 

Up to this point, I have considered most of my relationships as healthy. I have not quite made any close friendships, but I have some friendly acquaintances. One problem concerning my ability to know who considers me a friend is that I have pretty low self-esteem. This causes me to have poor judgement when it comes to knowing how I'm perceived by others. There may be girls who really do consider me their friend who I'd love to be friends with, but I don't know how they actually feel about me. 

I do think that meal times are great times to meet people and make friends. Some people that I was unsure about, I have sat with when the dining hall was mostly empty and had good conversations with. The thing I love about Converse is that most of the girls are friendly. Not everyone has the same beliefs, but I feel like most people are tolerant. However, I have noticed a trend of girls with similar beliefs grouping together.

One of my biggest problems with making lots of friends is my pathetic memory for names. When I put a name with a face the person becomes very important, and I'm able to remember specific things about them. The other problem is I have ADHD. Sometimes I'll talk to much or get too excited or get distracted and seem disinterested or rude. I hope people can look past that and know that I do not want to be mean to anyone.

Study Buddy

The title referring to a "study buddy" is actually less than true. I usually prefer to study alone. However, for some assignments having peers is quite helpful! This is especially true for some of my music classes. However, I haven't found the music building especially helpful for studying except for in the practice rooms when I'm learning music for my voice teacher, musicianship, or opera scenes, and that is usually for working individually. 

I have found a good place in the library tough. In the library there is a music oriented study place referred to as the music library! The music library is great for working with music peers or to just concentrate alone in the stillness. I have studied in there for several hours before, and it has a very good study atmosphere! Plus it offers a number of LPs, CDs, music movies, and music DVDs for listening or viewing with three wonderful listening rooms equipped with stereos and record players, and one specific for watching movies! I find the area a place where I can concentrate with ease, and if I have questions there's usually another music student there who can help! Plus there are internet-connected computers, so I have all the necessities I need! It is one of my top spots for studying. A study place that I haven't had a chance to study in, but I would also really to try out is the third floor because it seems so quiet and peaceful! It's rather dim, but quiet and peaceful places are ideal places for me to study. I also do like white noise, because if it is too quiet sometimes I feel like I'm going to fall asleep.

Honesty

In Converse 101 the students were challenge to be completely honest for twenty-one hours. Then we were supposed to blog about the experience, and the outcome. Unfortunately, I chose to be honest on Thursday. This is unfortunate because Thursday turned out to be quite uneventful! This concerned me because I worried that I might not be able to adequate blog summary because being honest was just like every other day. With that in mind, I chose to be honest another day. This also was a disappointment. The day failed to have any reasons for me to be dishonest. In light of the experience, being honest for not twenty-one hours, but forty-two (actually more like twenty-one minus the sleep) was surprisingly easy. 

My feelings on the honor code are great. I think this experiment proved that an honor works. I was not confronted with the desire to be dishonest because everyone (myself included) was acting considerably honorable. However, if I had conducted this experiment on the weekend, it may have been more challenging. I feel like the weekend is probably the majorty of student's preferred time for acting out. However, I was saying, the honor code is mostly good. It usually works because it raises the morale and self-esteem of the students because they have ideals and morals.

Converse Organizations

On September third I went to the Organizational Fair. The numerous clubs with information at their tables and gifts for those who signed up made it a very exciting event! I had trouble refusing most groups, so I signed up for more than I will actually join. My greatest interest pertained  to religious organizations. Because my religion is very important to me, it is a necessity that I stay focused on Jesus. In high school there used to be a group who would meet on Fridays during lunch and discuss the Bible. Unfortunately, it never gained much popularity. I ended up choosing to help the also unpopular recycling club on Friday's by collecting all the accumulated paper from each classroom. I was also a part of the FCA, but it was a bit complicated because it stopped being open to non-athletes when I was a junior due to change in leadership. Fortunately, I was on the varsity soccer team that year. Still, it turned into a group that failed to uphold many Christian ideas and rarely met. I also was in my church's choir, and I was in another church's youth group. Although being groups focused on Christ is nothing new to me, I have not been much of a leader. I signed up at the table for Young Life and Wyld Life. This would enable me to teach and be a positive influence on either high schoolers or middle schoolers. I think this would be really neat. 

I am also interested in music organizations. One club that really interested me was called Music Helping Others. It does nice things like caroling and singing to people on their birthdays. I am also used to being in music clubs. In high school I was in Tri-M, and I was its scholarship recipient.

One issue is the time crunch. Right now I am doing Opera Scenes, plus my music classes are quite demanding. Whenever I finally regain some of my spare time, I would really love to try synchronized swimming. It is foreign to me, but I think it would be really amazing to try! Lastly, this year I am also going to try and squeeze intramural sports, like winter basketball, into my busy schedule.

Scintillating Semester

My experience at Converse has been quite a ride! I have decided orientation here is comparable to a college boot camp. It whipped my summer mind back into shape for dedication and hard work. During orientation we freshmen had a dizzying amount of information hurled at our poor unsuspecting minds, but with resilience we rose above the confusion and chaos. Now taking classes, we are working hard and ready to take on the challenges before us! (The picture is of my small group at the student/teacher dinner.) I see this semester being very a very challenging, growing experience. For example, Musicianship is very difficult because we have to dedicate so much time to mastering sight singing while multitasking with conducting with one had and playing different melodies with the other. It can become very frustrating. The interactive musicianship device called MacGamut is awful when working on aural training. I can't seem to pass the level for the topics I have been assigned. The alternative is to work a certain amount of time and still get full credit, which is what I have had to do. Basically, it's very hard. Now for the moment, Music Theory is something I can handle, but it may become very difficult as the semester progresses. Chorale is going to be fun, but hard because I am currently placed as a second soprano which means I'll be singing harmony instead of the melody.  I have also enjoyed voice lessons, and I am excited to tackle the songs I have been assigned. Ideas and Cultures is a very interesting class; I am already enjoying it. I see the semester being a very good experience, and although I have some fear about the difficulty of the classes I am taking, I am excited to become a proficient musician!